By the time we reached the mansion, the twins were already fast asleep in the backseat. Cross's hand was loosely clutching his brother's sleeve, their heads leaning against each other, their faces peaceful-unaware of the storm clawing through my chest.
Bago bumaba ng sasakyan, tinitigan ko muna ang maamong mukha ng dalawa. Bumalik sa aking alaala ang malungkot na mukha ni Cross, hindi dahil nasigawan ko siya kundi dahil nawala rin sa paningin niya ang kakambal. Buong buhay nila, lagi silang nasa iisang lugar, magkatabi, magkasama. Ang mawalay sa piling ng isa't isa ay hindi pa kailan man nangyari. Noong nalaman ni Cross na siya ang unang kinuha nong silay pinanganak, inako niya ang pagiging kuya. Mas doble ang atensyon at proteksiyon ang binibigay nito kay Cohen. Kasabay ng kanilang pagsilang ang kaakibat na panganib. Sa murang edad, marahil napagtagpi tagpi nila ang magiging kakahantungan. Mula sa mahigpit na seguridad, ang katotohanan tungkol sa kanilang ama. Sa loob ng labing isang taon, napagkaitan ko sila ng napakaraming bagay, at nito lang nila nasilayan ang buhay sa labas ng mansion.
I carried the twins inside one by one, careful not to wake them. Cohen murmured something about sharks in his sleep; Cross mumbled back something about pufferfish. I brushed their hair gently before tucking them in, forcing myself to breathe, to appear calm. Nagtagal ng konti ang pagtitig ko sa dalawa. Parang ayaw ko pa nga silang iwan sa silid nila pero may mga bagay na kailangan kong gawin.
Ang makakuha ng sagot sa nangyaring pagtatagpo.
And the moment I stepped out of the twins room, calm vanished.
"Aiden," I called, my voice low but cold enough to draw him from the hall in seconds.
"Sir," he answered, posture straight, eyes sharp.
My jaw clenched. "Sabihin at ipaliwanag mo nga sa akin, Adien," panimula ko, "how one of the most wanted members of the Rivera family managed to stand within arm's reach of my son-without any of your men noticing."
He froze. Bilog ang mata. Matapang ang tingin.
I took a step forward. "We were followed by a white sedan this morning. I told you about it. And yet, somehow, Judar Rivera ended up in the same building, in the same corridor, two meters away from Cohen." My tone rose, quiet but biting. "How does that happen under your watch?"
"Sir, we checked all entry logs. No Rivera alias appeared. Ocean Park's private list was screened-"
"Then she used a different name, alam mo naman ang kapasidad ng bawat miyembro ng pamilyang iyon. " I snapped. "You think she'd walk in announcing who she is?"
Aiden swallowed hard, his knuckles whitening as he held his cap. "It won't happen again."
"It already happened," I said, the words sharp enough to cut through air. "And if Arden hears about this before I do something about it, you'll be lucky to still be wearing that uniform."
He lowered his head. "Understood, sir."
Bumaon ang kuko ko sa sariling kamay. Nangyari ang lahat habang dilat na dilat ang dalawa kong mata. Oo ngat trabaho nila Aiden ang pangalagaan ang aming seguridad, pero obligasyon kong hindi dapat mangyari ang pagtatagpong iyon.
"Ikaw lang ang maaasahan ko sa seguridad ng dalawa Aiden. Buhay mo na rin ang pagmamanman, pagmamatyag at ang pangangalap ng impormasyon sa mga Rivera. At alam mo rin higit nimo man kung gaano kahalaga sa pamilyang ito, at sa akin ang kambal. Inaanak mo sila. So please help me, hindi na dapat iyon mauulit pa."
I turned away, exhaling hard. My pulse was still uneven, my mind running through the memory of her face-the faint shock in her eyes, the way she looked at Cohen and Cross like she'd seen ghosts.
